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By the numbers – App Store grew by 31% last quarter

Apple’s App Store revenue grew by a whopping 31% last quarter, according to analysis of downloads and purchases. The total revenue from App Store downloads in Q3 2020 is thought to stand at some $19 billion, compared with last year’s $14.5 billion.

While Apple’s year-on-year App Store growth usually increases annually, the coronavirus pandemic – which has limited the way people across the globe can spend their leisure time – is thought to have contributed to these impressive figures. The data comes from Sensor Tower, which notes that Google Play – Android’s own app store – grew at an even faster rate, while accruing just over half of Apple’s total App Store revenue at $10.3 billion.

Describing the growth as “greater than typical,” Sensor Tower adds that the mobile gaming category continued to see particularly significant increases in revenue: unsurprisingly, a lot of us are playing mobile games while stuck at home.

In terms of apps outside of the gaming category, TikTok was the highest grossing for the second consecutive quarter. Second-place went to YouTube. And Disney+ – a recent addition to the video-streaming market – came in seventh position.

Tinder also fell one position (from third- to fourth-place). Though this is to be expected, given some of the restrictions on face-to-face social meet-ups.

Globally, a number of other high-grossing apps came from markets outside of the U.S., including Tencent Video (a Chinese video-sharing app) and Piccoma (a Japanese manga app).

When it comes to downloads, rather than revenue, it’s unsurprising that Zoom clocked-in second-position for the third quarter. Remote working has become the norm for most of us, and video-conferencing apps like Zoom have been adopted across workplaces.

While Q3 2020 revenue of $19 billion is good news for App Store developers, it’s great news for Apple, too. The company takes a 30% slice of all app purchases, including those made in-app. It’s a controversial set-up, though: Apple has come under fire for its “App Store tax” and is currently battling Fortnite-developer Epic Games over the matter.